


The Beginning

by FandomTrashMonarch



Series: Aleesia Mellowin [1]
Category: Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Genre: Dialogue Heavy, Magik - Freeform, battles, dragons but not the nice ones, oc is on a quest this is only the beginning
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-25
Updated: 2020-05-01
Packaged: 2021-02-25 21:55:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,227
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21552631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FandomTrashMonarch/pseuds/FandomTrashMonarch
Summary: All Aleesia had wanted to do was learn Restoration magik in order to help her family. What she got was far more than she had ever bargained for.(This is a retelling of Skyrim with my own OC.)(I'll add more tags as I go)
Series: Aleesia Mellowin [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1553185
Kudos: 1





	1. The End

**Author's Note:**

> Hey all! This is my first fic so I hope you enjoy!
> 
> (no beta, we die like men)

_Ugh, my head…_

Green eyes blinked blearily open, her vision swimming for a second before her surroundings came into focus. She was in the back of a carriage, her hands bound at the wrist, sitting amongst three other men. One was dressed in rags, the other in armour, and the third donned clothes fit for a jarl. Strangely enough, the fine one also had a cloth covering his mouth, like a makeshift gag.

Looking ahead, she noticed that the carriage she was in seemed to be the last in a line of many. All filled with people wearing the same uniform as the man sitting across from her.

“Hey you, you’re finally awake.”

She turned to look at the armoured man. He wore no helmet and his blonde hair was braided down the left side of his face. Still disoriented, she did not answer him.

“You were trying to cross the border, right? Walked right into that Imperial ambush, same as us, and that thief over there.”

“Damn you Stormcloaks.” It seems the thief didn’t appreciate being addressed as such. “Skyrim was fine until you came along. Empire was nice and lazy.”

She glanced back at the armoured man with slightly widened eyes. The thief prattled on about his woes but she wasn’t listening. He had called the armoured man a Stormcloak. She knew little about Skyrim and her people, but she had heard about the group of rebels operating under that name.

The man driving the carriage (who she assumed must be an Imperial soldier) seemed to have tired of their chatting and barked at them to be quiet. They, of course, didn’t listen.

“And what’s wrong with him, huh?” the thief asked, gesturing to the finely dressed man.

Instantly, the Stormcloak’s attitude changed. “Watch your tongue!” he snapped, “You’re speaking to Ulfric Stormcloak, the true High King.”

_What? The true high king? What does he mean the “true” high king?_

The thief reeled back in his seat and stared at the fine man. “Ulfric? The Jarl of Windhelm? You’re the leader of the rebellion! But if they’ve captured you.... Oh gods, where are they taking us?”

She didn’t have to be an expert in Skyrim’s politics to know that when you catch your enemy’s leader, you make sure that they can never be a problem again.

“I don’t know where we’re going,” the Stormcloak murmured, “but Sovngarde awaits.”

This was apparently the wrong thing to say. The thief’s confusion quickly transformed into outright panic.

“No, this can’t be happening.” he cried, “This isn’t happening!”

She sat there, as the Stormcloak tried to comfort the man he had sent into a panic. An Imperial soldier called out to his general, “The headsman is waiting!”

She understood, then, why the thief had begun to panic. This was a one way trip for them all. Tears sprang to her eyes. She had just been trying to get to the College of Winterhold. She hadn’t been able to get any instruction back home, so Skyrim was her next best shot. There she would have been able to master restoration magik. Then, she could go back home to her sister. But now….

 _Gods, Ryllae… I’m sorry…_ Quiet sobs racked her body. _I’m so so sorry…_ She bent over, trying to hide her tears from the men around her with her crimson hair. The thief’s pleas to his gods fell on deaf ears and her surroundings faded away. She stayed this way until the carriage entered the towns walls. While still not fully aware, she recognized that there were Thalmor soldiers off to the side of the road. She knew of the Thalmor’s treaty with the Empire; it had stopped one of the greatest wars anyone had ever seen. Maybe if she could explain to them what she was doing, they would understand and let her go! The Stormcloak seemed to notice them too, and a scowl donned his face.

“Damn elves,” he spat, “I bet they had something to do with this!”

This put a pause to her thoughts. She knew the Stormcloaks were rebels and that the Empire, and by extension the Thalmor, were their enemies. But she didn’t understand why he had damned elves in general. _Hell,_ she thought to herself, _I don’t understand most of the Stormcloaks’ morals._ Yes, the Thalmor were elves, but not all elves were Thalmor. _Surely he must understand that….._

She pondered this until the carriage stopped and the Stormcloak nudged her shoulder.

“Let’s go. Shouldn’t keep the gods waiting for us.”

Shakily, she rose and followed the three men off the carriage. They lined up in front of two Imperial soldiers. Looking at her armour, the woman seemed to hold a higher rank than the man to her left. Said man was holding open a book with a quill poised in his right hand.

“Step towards the block when we call your name.” the woman called, with a voiced that demanded obedience, “One at a time.”

“Empire loves their damned lists,” the Stormcloak scoffed.

The man with the book, which must be a list of the captured, called out, “Ulfric Stormcloak. Jarl of Windhelm.”

“It has been an honor, Jarl Ulfric!”

The Stormcloak seemed loyal to the end, and yet she began to wish he would keep his mouth shut in the face of their impending dooms.

“Ralof of Riverwood.”

The Stormcloak turned and walked towards the block.

_Well, at least I have a name to put to the face. Not that I’ll need it for much longer…_

“Lokir of Rorikstead.”

“No,” cried the thief, “I’m not a rebel! You can’t do this!”

In a last ditch effort, the thief turned and ran right past the Imperial woman.

“Halt!” she commanded. When she wasn’t obeyed, she signaled the archers. Immediately, the thief was shot down. The Imperial woman turned back and scoffed, “Anyone else feel like running?”

 _This is truly it then._ A cold sweat enveloped her. _If I try to run, I‘ll just get shot down. And if they’re willing to do that, if they’re willing to kill a man who had no allegiance with their enemy, then there’s no way they’ll let me explain myself. I’m done for._

“Wait,” the man with the book called to her, “You there, step forward.”

Not wanting to hasten her death, she did as she was told.

“Who are you?’ the man asked.

_Wait, I’m not on their list? Maybe this will give me a chance to explain myself._

“My name is Aleesia Mellowin. Please I-”

“You’re not with the Thalmor Embassy, are you high elf?” the man cut her off, “No, that can’t be right…”

“No, I’m not.” Aleesia pleaded, “But please, you must let me explain-”

The man cut her off again, turning to the Imperial woman and asking “Captain. What should we do? She’s not on the list.”

A scowl crossed the captains face. “Forget the list,” she barked, “She goes to the block.”

Aleesia’s heart sank. There truly was no getting out of this situation. 

“By your orders Captain.” The man looked at her, with what appeared to be genuine sorrow on his face. “I’m sorry,” he said softly, “We’ll make sure your remains are returned to the Summerset Isle. Follow the Captain, prisoner.”

Feeling utterly defeated, Aleesia said nothing. She hung her head and followed the captain to where all the other prisoners were standing. Once she had reached her place in line, a man donned in gaudy gold armour began to speak.

“Ulfric Stormcloak,” he began with so much venom in his voice that Aleesia was surprised he wasn’t actually spitting acid at the man, “Some here in Helgen call you a hero. But a hero doesn’t use a power like the Voice to murder his king and usurp his throne.”

Ulfric’s only response is a muffled grunt.

The man continues, “You started this war, plunged Skyrim into chaos, and now the Empire is going to put you down, and restore the peace.” The man freezes, as does everyone else, as a strange echoing roar from the sky permeates the air.

“What was that?!” the man with the book exclaimed.

“It was nothing,” the gaudy man quickly dismissed the interruption before turning to the captain, “Carry on.”

“Yes, General Tullius.” She quickly responded, gesturing to the priestess to step forward, “Give them their last rites.”

The priestess moved forward, raised her hands, and began the rites.

“As we commend your souls to Aetherius, Blessings of the Eight Divines upon you, for you are the salt and earth of Nirn, our beloved-”

“For the love of Talos!” An angry shout came from within the rows of prisoners. The was minor scuffling as a fed-up Stormcloak pushed his way to the front of the crowd and began marching up to the block, “Shut up and let’s get this over with.”

Spurned, the priestess lowered her hands and spat at the Stormcloak, “As you wish.”

“Come on!” the soldier yelled, “I haven’t got all morning!”

Aleesia watched in horror as an Imperial soldier pushed the Stormcloak onto his knees in front of the chopping block. How could this man be so calm? How could he speak with such bravado at the end of his life?

“My ancestors are smiling at _me_ , Imperials. Can you say the same?”

The man’s speech ended as quickly as his life.

Aleesia gaped as the Imperial soldier merely nudged the headless body to the side, not a hint of remorse in their eyes. The rest of the Stormcloaks started yelling and hurling insults at the Imperials, their bodies shaking with anger. The Imperials answered the jeers with shouts of “Justice!” and chants about the end of the Stormcloaks.

A sharp command cut through the cacophony, “Next! The high elf!”

But… but that was _her_. There were no other high elves around, save for the Thalmor. Oh gods. Oh no no no no no, this can’t be happening so quickly! She should have had time; she wasn’t even with the Stormcloaks! They should have at least gotten rid of their enemy before executing a clearly unrelated party! Right? 

But no. The Imperials were looking at her, they were expecting _her_ to walk to her own death and _accept it_. She had no choice though. Aleesia had seen what happens to those who try to run. She fought back tears as she began to move towards the chopping block. She takes a few steps and then falters, as the same echoing roar from earlier rings out from the sky.

“There it is again!” the Imperial with the list exclaimed, “Did you hear that?”

Everyone quieted, listening to see if the sound would be produced once more. The Imperial captain, however, did not care.

“I said; next prisoner!”

Sheepishly, the list man nodded and turned to look at Aleesia; “To the block, prisoner.” he said in an almost gentle voice, “Nice and easy.”

Shakily, she continued on her path to the block. She was made to kneel next to the still warm corpse of the Stormcloak. Her head was placed onto the block; her cheek became plastered with the viscous blood of the previous victim. She closed her eyes and sent a final prayer to Auri-El and Mara.


	2. Sides

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pandemonium ensues and Aleesia has to decide who will hold her life in their hands.

She held her breath as she heard the headsman raise his axe. Yet, instead of the swish of the blade, she heard another roar and a shout.

“What in Oblivion is  _ that _ ?!”

“Sentries! What do you see?”

“It’s-”

Aleesia snapped her eyes open as a heavy thud came directly across from her. She looked up only to see a large, gnarled, black dragon looming over the clearing from atop the guard tower. Immediately, cries of “dragon!” rang throughout the town and everything was sent into chaos. The dragon let out a deafening shout that staggered those standing and caused the clouds behind it to form a vortex. It began letting out a barrage of shouts, knocking over almost everything in sight.

“Guards!” Aleesia heard General Tulius yell, “Get the townspeople to safety!”

In the rush, Aleesia was kicked off the block and almost trampled. She was so dazed that she couldn’t tell up from down. There was no way she was going to be able to get up in time to find shelter. She rested her head on the ground, accepting her fate, when she heard a faint yell and footsteps running  _ towards _ her.

“Hey, high elf!”

She carefully lifted her head to see who was calling to her.

“Get up!” 

It was Ralof.

“Come on! The gods won’t give us another chance!”

She barely had time to drag herself off the ground before Ralof was there, grabbing her by her still bound wrists, and dragging her to the nearest intact building.

Once inside, Ralof set her down next to a wall, checked outside to see if there was anyone else who needed help, then closed and locked the door. Aleesia backed into the closest  corner and slid to the ground. Leaning forward, she placed her head between her knees in an attempt to help herself steady her breathing.

“Jarl Ulfric!” Ralof stormed over to the Jarl, who was no longer gagged, “What was that thing? Could the legends be true?”

Ulfric huffed and crossed his arms, “Legends don’t burn down villages.” He spoke softly, but not so softly that he couldn’t be heard.  _ Probably as a precaution _ , Aleesia thought,  _ because he has The Voice. _

The dragon’s roars and the cries of soldiers and townspeople could be heard through the building’s brick walls. Ulfric uncrossed his arms and tensed.

“We need to move.” he shouted, “Now!”

Ralof nodded and addressed the others in the room, “Up through the tower, let’s go!”

The ones who could move wasted no time and were up the tower in seconds. Ralof stayed until the last soldier had left and then began to ascend the tower himself. Aleesia was still on the ground. She couldn’t believe this was happening.  _ How _ could this be happening? Dragons were supposed to be things of legends; scary stories told to misbehaving children! Now there was a dragon, a real live  _ actual dragon _ , out there wreaking havoc on the town. Where would it go next? What would it do? Where there other dragons? What-

_ SMACK _

Aleesia whipped her head up to see Ralof glaring at her.

“Let’s go elf.” his voice was almost cold, “Unless you’d rather die here.”

“No….” she answered in a whisper.

Ralof huffed, turned, and jerked his head towards the stairs.

“Come on then.”

She got up and to make up for lost time, she began running up the stairs. She could hear Ralof behind her. Halfway up the stairs, Aleesia heard a roar, one that was far too close for comfort, before a large section of the wall in front of her was bashed away. She stumbled back as the dragon pushed it’s head through the hole and unleashed a torrent of fire into the building. Screams came from the top of the staircase and the dragon flew away. Ralof, who was not far behind Aleesia, began cursing.

“Damn it all!”

“What do we do now?” Aleesia asked, her voice shaky. Ralof pondered the situation for only a short few moments before looking out the hole and pointing to a partially destroyed building on the other side.

“See that inn?” Aleesia nodded. “Good. Jump through the roof and keep going!”

“You’ll be right behind me, right?” She knew this man, and the Stormcloaks in general, held a disdain for elves. But she wasn’t quite ready to lose the one person who had helped her survive this attack so far.

Unfortunately, Ralof shook his head. “I don’t think the floor would be able to take my weight right now, but you should be able to make it just fine. Now go!”

Aleesia nodded, and without giving herself time to hesitate, she jumped.

As she hit the floor of the burning inn, she could feel the entire structure shudder. Not wanting to risk being buried alive, Aleesia ran as quickly and as lightly as she could out of the building. Barely a second passed after she emerged, that the entire inn collapsed. 

_ Damn, that was close. _ She began to scan her surroundings, trying to find Ralof. Hell, if she could find anyone that could help her she’d take it. It was then that she heard a shout.

“Hamming!”

Not wanting to waste a second, Aleesia ran to where the voice had come from.

“You need to get over here, now!”

She rounded the corner in time to see an Imperial pull a young boy out of the way of the dragon’s fire. He ran to bring the boy to a man who must’ve been his father and she ran to meet  them . As the boy and his father embraced, the Imperial turned towards Aleesia. She recognized him as the one who had held the list.

“Still alive then, prisoner?” he asked, quirking a brow.

“Heh… barely.”

The man smirked, “Good. Keep close to me if you want to stay that way. Gunnar,” he turned to the father, “Take Hamming and get out of here as fast as you can. I have to find General Tullius and join the defense.”

The father nodded and held tightly to his son, “Gods guide you, Hadvar.”

The man, Hadvar, nodded before turning and running off. Aleesia, wanting to stay alive, followed him. They ran through the town, passing by deserted and destroyed homes. They began to creep through a narrow path between a wall and the back of a house. They were about to exit the path when Hadvar grabbed  Aleesia and pulled her against the wall. Roughly.

“Hey-”

Quick as can be, Hadvar turned and slapped a hand over her mouth.

“Sorry,” he whispered, “but don’t move.”

Before Aleesia could even think to ask why, there was a resounding whoosh followed by a thud. One that came from atop the wall they were currently pressed against. Her eyes widened as she saw one of the dragon’s hooked talons grasp the edge of the wall, mere inches behind Hadvar’s head. She heard its sharp inhale before her entire field of view was engulfed by flames. The heat was unbearable, and Aleesia thought for sure that this would be her end. After what felt like ages, and yet must have only been seconds, the dragon deemed the area suitably destroyed and ascended to the sky.

Not one to lose time, Hadvar immediately began moving.

“Quickly, follow me!”

Aleesia did so, following Hadvar out of the path and through the destruction. She tried so hard to not hear the screams coming from every direction. To ignore the countless charred corpses they had to pass by. Eventually they came across the rest of the Imperial soldiers. There were many on the ground, fatally wounded, but still trying to fight and defend their comrades. Amidst the chaos, Aleesia heard Hadvar yell to one of the soldiers still standing.

“Where is General Tullius?”

“He went into the keep! Hurry!”

Hadvar took off calling back to her, “It’s you and me prisoner. Stay close!”

She followed him past archers and swordsmen and under an archway that lead to the keep. They were almost to the door when Hadvar stopped short and tensed. 

“Ralof!” he screamed, fist clenching around the hilt of his sword, “You damned traitor! Get out of my way!”

Ralof just smirked, “We’re escaping Hadvar. You’re not stopping us this time.”

“Fine.”  H advar spat, “I hope that dragon takes you all to Sovngarde!”

“It might take us all if we don’t move!” Aleesia interjected, as the dragon swept down and grabbed  an archer from the keep’s walls.

Either spurred on by her words or by the quickly reapproaching dragon, both Hadvar and Ralof ran to different entrances of the keep. Both called out to her to follow.

“You! Come on, into the keep!”

“With me, prisoner. Let’s go!”

Both expected her to follow, and yet she could only choose one. And she would have to choose fast, the dragon was almost upon her. Both had helped her, yet Ralof had seemed to do so begrudgingly. While Hadvar had wanted to help her; even before the dragon attack. He had noticed her name wasn’t on the list and had tried to see if it was necessary that she be executed as well. So, not thinking of alliances, Aleesia turned, and followed Hadvar into the keep.


	3. Escape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They managed to escape from the dragon, but more obstacles await

Hadvar  led her inside and down into the keep’s barracks. Only once they were deep enough in the building, did Hadvar sheath his sword. Catching her breath, Aleesia sat down on one of the beds while Hadvar searched around the room.

“Are you alright there, prisoner?” Hadvar called to her from across the room.

“As alright as I can be, considering.”

“Ha! Makes sense. You don’t look like you’ve seen much violence.”

She scoffed, “You’d be right about that.”

Hadvar made his way back over to Aleesia, “Well, looks like we’re the only ones who made it.”

“That can’t be good, can it?”

“No, it can’t.” he sighed and ran a hand through his hair, “But I can’t… I mean, was that really a dragon? One of the bringers of the End Times?”

“Certainly look like it to me. Felt like it too.”

“Yeah, it certainly did, didn’t it?” Hadvar straightened, “We should keep moving. Here,” he held out his hand, “Let me see if I can get those bindings off.”

“Thank you.” Aleesia offered up her bound wrists and Hadvar began cutting through the sturdy rope. He made quick work of the bindings and soon enough, Aleesia was stretching her wrists out and trying to regain circulation.

“We might be stuck together for a while.”

She paused her ministrations to look Hadvar in the eye.

“It might make this easier if I called you by your name instead of ‘prisoner’, wouldn’t it?’

She gave him a wry smile, “Yes, it would.”

“Well,” Hadvar scratched the back of his head, “Your name started with an ‘A’ didn’t it?’

“Yes, it does. The name is Aleesia. And from what I’ve gathered, you are Hadvar.”

“Aye, you’ve got that right!” Hadvar chuckled, “Well Aleesia, go ahead and take a look around. There should be plenty of gear to choose from. I’m going to see if I can find something for these burns.”

Aleesia nodded and made her way over to one of the chests next to a weapons rack. In the chest she found Imperial armor and a short sword. Mildly concerned about her modesty, she threw a quick “don’t look” over her shoulder to Hadvar before changing into the armor. It was admittedly a bit ill fitted (after all, this armor was obviously made for an Imperial man, not a high elf woman) but she decided it would be better than nothing. Just before she closed the chest, she noticed the torch light glint off of something at the bottom. Reaching in, she pulled out a small key.

“Hadvar,” she called, “Do you know what this key might be for?”

“It’s probably a key to the keep. It won’t do much good now though.”

“Hmm.”

Aleesia pocketed the key and readied her new sword in her right hand.

“I’m ready, Hadvar.”

“Almost ready, you mean.”

“What? No, I’ve got armor and a weapon. Let’s get out of here.”

“That you do. But first, here.” Hadvar held out a jar of salve to her, “Put this on anywhere you may have been burned. It’s not much, but it’s the best I can do for now.”

“Oh.”

Aleesia sheathed her sword and took the salve from Hadvar’s outstretched hand. She quickly applied a decent layer of salve onto her forearms and the right side of her face.

“Thank you.” she handed the jar back to Hadvar.

“You’re welcome.” he responded, putting the jar into a hidden pocket in his armor, “Let’s keep moving then. That thing is still out there.”

Hadvar pulled a chain next to a gated door, causing the gate to lower and allow them to pass through.

“Come on, this way.”

They travelled down a short corridor before coming to another gated entrance. They slowed down and Hadvar put out a hand to stop Aleesia from continuing. She shot him a questioning look. Hadvar shook his head and signalled for her to crouch down, get to the wall, and keep quiet. Together they inched closer to the gate until Aleesia could hear what had  caused Hadvar to stop.

_ Stormcloaks _ Hadvar mouthed to her, quietly readying his sword.

_ What? _ she mouthed back. Hadvar let out a silent sigh and looked towards the gate before quickly and quietly crossing over to her side of the corridor.

“Stormcloaks,” he whispered, “Maybe we can reason with them.”

“Really?”

“It’s worth a shot. But there’s a very good chance that we may have to fight them.”

“ _ WHAT? _ ” she whisper yelled back, “I can’t… I mean…”

“We won’t really have a choice if it comes to that. We just have to hope it doesn’t.”

“Ok.”

“Now, I’m going to go in first and try to talk with them. Stay behind me and keep your guard up. If they start attacking, I need you to have my back.”

“I… I will.”

“Good. Here we go.”

Hadvar stood, sheathed his sword, and crossed the corridor once more. He pulled the gate chain and stood back as the gate lowered. Normally, the grinding screech of a lowering gate would alert those in the area that someone was entering. The Stormcloaks, however, seemed to be arguing so loudly that they didn’t notice Hadvar entering until he was several feet into the room. He had walked in with his hands raised, an obvious gesture meant to show he meant no harm. Yet these Stormcloaks seemed to be too high on adrenaline and turbulent emotions that as soon as they saw a man donned in Imperial armor approaching, they attacked.

“Aleesia!”

She didn’t have time to think before one of the Stormcloaks was charging her. She raised her sword and, in an attempt to dissuade them from coming any closer, released a stream of fire out of her left hand. This, unfortunately, did nothing and the Stormcloak kept charging. Quickly, Aleesia raised her sword to block the mace swinging at her head. She pushed the mace away with the blade of her sword and stepped back. The Stormcloak charged in again, swinging wildly.

“Die Imperial bastard!”

Aleesia continued to block the swings that she could, but she had never wielded a sword before. Her arm was growing tired and she was starting to take the hits more often than not. Desperately, she blocked a particularly frantic swing from the Stormcloak and shoved her left hand as close as she could to the soldier’s unprotected face.

“Wha-”

She mustered as much Magika as she could and released it in a powerful burst of flames from her palm.

The soldier barely had time to scream before they collapsed to the ground, clawing at their face. Within seconds, they grew still. Aleesia stared down at the body, frozen.  _ She _ had done that.  _ She _ had ended that person’s life.

“Hey.”

She startled as Hadvar placed a hand on her shoulder.

“You had no choice. You had to do it. It’s alright.”

“But..” her lip quivered, “but I-I never wanted to…to…”

“I know,” Hadvar’s eyes softened, “The first is never easy. It’s okay to be upset but we need to keep moving.”

She wiped her eyes, and nodded. Hadvar took his hand off her shoulder.

“Do you still have that key?”

“Yeah, hold on.” Aleesia reached her shaking hand into her pocket and pulled out the keep key, “Why though? I thought you said it was useless.”

“I did.” he took the key and walked over to an iron gate, “But this gate is locked and none of them had any keys or lock picks. So I figured this could be worth a try.”

Hadvar inserted the key and turned it. There was the faintest *click* before the gate swung open.

“There we go!” He turned and tossed the key back to Aleesia, who fumblingly caught it. “Let’s keep going.”

They went through the gate, which opened straight into a large staircase. They followed it down and into another corridor. They could vaguely see the outlines of another group of people at the other end of the hall. They began to cautiously make their way towards the group when the ceiling in front of them collapsed. Shaken, Aleesia readied her sword and her fire while Hadvar ran up to the rubble.

“Damn, that dragon doesn’t give up easy.”

“I thought we were out of it’s reach by now!” Aleesia exclaimed, “I thought we were down underground or something!”

“Ha ha-” Hadvar’s laugh turned into a brief coughing fit as he inhaled some dust, “Not *cough* not quite yet.”

“Well,” she lowered her hands, “What do we do now?”

Hadvar looked around and then walked over to a door that had, miraculously, not been blocked by the rubble.

“Guess we have to hope this door leads us around this mess.”

They opened the door and walked into a large supply room. There were voices coming from around one of the corners.

“Sounds like that group of people had the same idea as we did.” Aleesia commented, readying her weapons once again.

“Aye, let’s just hope they’re friendly.” Hadvar raised his shield and unsheathed his sword. They, of course, were not.

As soon as Aleesia and Hadvar rounded the corner, the group of Stormcloaks charged them. Aleesia, with a pit in her gut, wasted no time in unleashing streams of fire at the soldiers. Two must have been severely wounded beforehand because they dropped within seconds of catching fire. The other two split off to fight her and Hadvar individually. 

Both had longswords and Aleesia could hear one clash against Hadvar’s shield. She, however, didn’t have a shield and she seriously doubted that she could block the soldier’s attacks with a single handed sword. Thinking quickly, she realized she would have to stay out of the longsword’s range and try to wear the soldier down with her fire. She sidestepped, ducked, and weaved between the man’s swings. Dodging the swings was an easier feat than she had imagined it would be. What the longsword gave him in range, it seemed to take from the man’s speed. Realizing this, Aleesia began slipping in shallow thrusts at his exposed skin as quickly as she could after every swing. The Stormcloak was soon covered in so many cuts that the blood had started to affect his grip. On his next swing, the longsword slipped from his hand and Aleesia took the chance to lunge in and drive her sword through the man’s gut. He gasped as she stood and pulled the sword from him before he collapsed, unmoving, onto the ground. She stood there for a few seconds before Hadvar spoke again.

“For someone who’s never fought, you’re pretty smart in battle.”

“Thanks, I guess.”

“You’re still pretty beat up though. Look around and see if you can find any potions. This is a supply room so there’s bound to be some in here somewhere.”

Aleesia sheathed her sword and dispelled her Magika. She headed over to a dining table that was surrounded by shelves. She found only one healing potion and one Magika potion. She looked around a bit more and saw several ropes of herbs hanging from the rafters along with pheasants and rabbits. Luckily there was a satchel on one of the side tables and she decided to fill it with as many supplies as she could. She grabbed a pheasant and a rabbit, wrapped both in a cloth, and placed them at the bottom of the bag before grabbing the herbs and placing them inside along with the potions. She searched the rest of the room and ended up finding several more potions, some apples, and some potatoes. Placing everything in her bag, she headed over to Hadvar, who was waiting by the door.

“Done then?”

“Yeah, I got potions and food for both of us.”

“Good. This way should lead to the other side of the rubble.”

“Onwards we go then.”

They exited the supply room to see that the door did in fact, lead to the other side of the rubble. They walked down the destroyed hall to another set of stairs. Which they again, followed down. At the base of the stairs, they emerged in a room with cages everywhere. Hanging from the ceiling, lining the walls, some empty, others not.

“What  _ is _ this place?” Aleesia asked, slightly off put.

“The torture room.” Hadvar answered in a whisper, “Gods, I wish we didn’t need these…” 

On the far side of the room, there were two Imperial soldiers, holding bloody weapons with Stormcloaks at their feet.

“Ah, seems as though you’ve missed the fun!” the smaller man said. Aleesia couldn’t see his eyes from underneath his hood, but his voice gave her the chills.

“Fun?” she questioned.

“Well, you see, these boys,” he gestured to the Stormcloaks at his feet, “seemed a bit upset at how I’ve been entertaining their comrades.”

“We haven’t the time for this!” Hadvar exclaimed, “Don’t you even know what’s going on? A dragon is attacking Helgen!”

“A  _ dragon _ ?” the man scoffed, “Please. Don’t make up nonsense.”

“It’s not nonsense!” Aleesia insisted, “It nearly killed us!”

“Come to think of it,” the man tapped a finger on his lips, “I  _ did _ hear some odd noises coming from over there.”

“Come with us.” Hadvar instructed, “We need to get out of here. And fast.”

The man crossed his arms and spat, “You have no authority over me,  _ boy _ .”

“Didn’t you hear me?” Hadvar was exasperated, “I said: the keep is under attack!”

“Forget the old man.” the larger Imperial spoke up, “I’ll come with you.”

“Good. At least one of you has some sense.”

“Give me one minute before we go.” Aleesia told Hadvar before running over to a side table.

“Why?”

“Because,” she picked up several lockpicks and then ran to one of the not empty cages, “There’s a spellbook in here and those are mage’s robes. If I’m going to have to fight more, I want to be better prepared.”

“Alright, hurry up with that lock then. We don’t have much time.”

She knelt down and began to fiddle with the lock while the hooded man sighed in the background.

“Sure, take  _ all _ my things…”

Soon enough, the cage door swung open and she hurriedly grabbed the spellbook, mage’s robes, a few loose coins, and a potion off the ground before running back to Hadvar. She figured now wasn’t the best time to change clothes but she was able to put on the hood that had come with them. Instantly, she felt her Magika become stronger and more plentiful.  _ Nice, it’s enchanted. _ Shoving everything else into her bag, Aleesia turned to Hadvar.

“Ready.”

“Let’s go.”

The three of them turned and went down a hallway lined with cells. Aleesia looked into one and immediately looked away. She didn’t want to know what poor soul  _ that _ was. Down another staircase and into another room lined with cages. She kept her eyes glued onto Hadvar’s back, not wanting to see anything else terrible today. They walked over to the far corner of the room, but instead of seeing a wall or another door, there was a giant hole in the wall leading into what looked to be a cave.

“Wait wait wait,” Aleesia sputtered, “why is there just a cave tunnel opening connected to the town’s keep?”

“Honestly lass,” Hadvar scratched his cheek, “I couldn’t tell you. But right now I’d say it’s better if we don’t question it.”

“Alright…”

The trio continued into the cave tunnel, following sparsely placed light sconces. This  place must have been planned and explored for there to be placed lights.  _ Why did  _ _ they _ _ make the opening look so ... unpleasant though? _ Aleesia shrugged to herself and figured she’d do as Hadvar suggested and not question it. They wandered through the tunnel for quite a while undisturbed. Soon, they came to a cavern with a small river that had man-made bridges and platforms around it.  _ Okay, so this must be a source of water or something. That’s why this tunnel exists. _ However, the water source wasn’t the only thing in the cavern.

“More Stormcloaks,” Hadvar growled as he ready his weapon. Aleesia and the large Imperial did the same. No sooner had the trio spotted the Stormcloaks, that the Stormcloaks spotted them.

Hadvar charged across the bridge to fight the closest Stormcloak while the large Imperial and Aleesia ran down the stairs to their right to tackle the two soldiers down below. Both had war axes, and while the large Imperial would be able to fend those off with his own war axe, Aleesia knew that once again she would have to avoid hits and attack from a distance. She lunged in to slash the Stormcloak’s side, making sure that should she move somewhere, he would follow. She edged herself away from the other fighting pairs, dodging swings as she went. When she felt she was a safe enough distance away from the others, she began gathering her Magika. She waited until the Stormcloak’s next downswing before quickly dropping her sword to dart in close and grab the Stormcloak by the face. She released a quick burst of flames to stun the man. It almost worked; the man was too focussed on trying to put his hair out and screaming that Aleesia had the chance to place a palm over his open mouth. Concentrating as hard as she could, she released a thin yet potent stream of fire out of the center of her palm and into the man’s  throat . He began to thrash violently, attempting to shake Aleesia off of him. She held on tightly though; and as the man slowly sunk to the ground and grew still, she went with him.

She went to stand up when the distinct  _ whoosh _ of an arrow flew by her head. Looking around, she spotted an archer hidden in the corner of the room. Without taking her eyes off of them, she picked up her sword and ran towards the archer. She weaved back and forth erratically as she ran, trying to make herself a more difficult target. Since this one didn’t have a sword, Aleesia figured she could probably take him out with her own. She had used quite a bit of her Magika and it hadn’t had a chance to replenish itself yet. The archer saw her approaching and moved out of his corner and began running along the wall. He tried to keep his distance from her, but trying to aim and shoot while running is a bit difficult. Thus, Aleesia quickly caught up to him and swung her sword at his bow. The bow must have been enforced somehow though, because it didn’t break from the swing like she was expecting it to.  _ Damn. Forget it. _ She attempted to attack around the bow but the Stormcloak was crafty. He used his bow to block her shots and the string to entangle her weapon. Aleesia attempted to pull her sword loose, but only ended up slipping backwards and losing it altogether. She fell on her back and quickly sat up to see the Stormcloak notching another arrow. It was then that an acrid smell hit her.  _ Oil. I slipped on oil. He’s  _ _ standing _ _ in  _ _ oil _ _. _ Aleesia let her fear show on her face as she scuttled backwards. The Stormcloak saw this and smirked, taking a step forward and aiming at her throat.

“Any last words, scum?”

“Don’t be such a hot head.”

Aleesia shot a quick burst of fire at his feet. The oil instantly caught fire and the man was quickly engulfed in a raging inferno. She quickly rolled out of reach of the flames; she had survived so much, she wasn’t about to die by her own hand. When she was certain she wasn’t going to catch fire, she stood up and surveyed the cavern, looking for Hadvar and the large Imperial.

“Hadvar!”

“Over here lass!”

The shout came from the bridge overlooking the river. Aleesia quickly ran over to him.

“Where…” she huffed as she caught up to him, “Where’s the other one?”

“He fought well.”

“ _ Damn, _ ” she cursed.

“I know. But what’s done is done. We need to see if we can find a way out.” Hadvar patted her on the back before walking over to another tunnel. Aleesia followed.

The tunnel led to a  raised drawbridge with a lever next to it. Hadvar murmured a “here goes nothing” and pulled the lever. The bridge went down without a hitch. They  crossed into yet another cavern, though this one was much larger than the last. A few steps in , they felt a ground shaking rumble and heard rocks falling. Turning behind them, they saw that rocks had indeed fallen; right into and through the bridge. Once the ground steadied, Hadvar went up to the ledge.

“Damn it. No going back that way then.” he turned back to face Aleesia, “I guess we’re lucky that didn’t come down on top of us.”

“Heh. Yeah, I guess.”

“Well,” Hadvar turned and began wandering into the cavern, “we better push on. I’m sure the others will find another way out.”

They carefully ventured onwards into the cavern until  they  came across a small stream which led into…

“Great.” Aleesia sighed, “Another tunnel.”

Hadvar let out a startled laugh, “Ha! Get used to it lass. This is Skyrim.”

She sighed and followed Hadvar as he took the lead. They passed by a ledge with a small oil lamp perched on it. Aleesia decided to ignore the ribcage sat next to the lamp in favor of the small pouch of coins hidden behind it. She grabbed it, quickly counted out the nine septims within, and placed it into her bag. In front of her, Hadvar waved his hand in front of his face. She quirked an eyebrow.

“You alright there?”

“Pppbbbtttt!”

“Really now? You don’t say.”

“Sorry lass. Got a spiderweb right in the mouth.”

“Fun.”

“Look; if there are spiderwebs then there are spiders nearby. Keep an eye out.”

“Okay.”

As they continued down the tunnel, the spiderwebs became thicker and larger. Faint hissing and clicking noises could be heard. Aleesia raised her sword.

“Spiders?”

“Spiders.”

They crept onwards, coming to a tunnel opening absolutely blocked by toughened spiderwebs.

“Aleesia, do you think you can burn this away?”

“I can try. Give me one second.”

She sheathed her sword and rummaged around her bag. After a moment, she pulled out a small blue bottle and chugged it. Placing the now empty bottle back in her bag, she rubbed her hands together.

“Alright,” she stepped forward, “you might want to stand back a bit.”

Hadvar nodded and moved a few feet behind Aleesia. Channeling her newly replenished Magika to her hands, she released a gentle stream of fire onto the webs. She moved her hands along the edges of the web, where it was connected to the tunnel wall.  The  connections began to hiss and steam under her fire and soon enough, the doorway was clear.

“Well done lass.”

“Thanks… now let’s hurry and get rid of these things!” Aleesia rolled her shoulders and prepared to charge into the spider den.

“Haha, what? Afraid of a few spiders?” Hadvar jabbed as he readied his own sword.

“No. I just don’t like them.”

With that, Aleesia charged in; releasing a stream of fire at the first spider she saw. It was one of three, all of which appeared to be smaller in stature (this, of course, meant that they came up  past her waist). The first went down quickly, almost instantly.  _ They must be vulnerable to fire. _ The second went down, same as the first. There was a thump from behind her and an increase in the volume of the spiders’ clicking. She turned and came eye to eyes with a fully grown spider.

“Shit!”

She jumped back as the spider lunged forward with it’s pincers.

“Hadvar! Get it while it’s focussed on me!”

“Aye!”

Aleesia began leading the spider around the cavern, making sure to move just out of range whenever it attacked. Hadvar quickly finished off the third and final of the smaller spiders and began creeping up behind the large one. While Aleesia kept it distracted, Hadvar began swinging at it’s legs. Every time it moved to look at what was attacking it from behind, Aleesia released a burst of fire into the spider’s eyes; making it furious at her but also keeping it’s attention off of Hadvar. This went on for a while until finally, Hadvar managed to remove most of  its back legs. The spider went to lunge at Aleesia once more, but with fewer legs than it was used to, fell short and stumbled. Aleesia took the opportunity and used the last of her strength to plunge her sword through the spider’s head. The spider spasmed and then went limp. Aleesia yanked her sword free, stumbled back two steps, and promptly fell on her ass. 

“Oof!’

“Aleesia!” Hadvar jogged up to her and placed a hand on her shoulder, “Are you alright lass?”

“Heh, yeah…. I just…… need to….. catch my breath. I’m…… not used to…… all this fighting.”

“Alright,” Hadvar nodded and stood back, “But we can’t rest long. There could still be Stormcloaks around,” he kicked the nearest spider corpse, “or worse.”

Aleesia chuckled, and slowly began to stand, “Let me collect the venom from these guys and then we can go.”

Hadvar nodded, then walked over to another tunnel entrance on the left. Aleesia made quick work of gathering the spider venom; she placed a piece of leather over the recently emptied Magika potion bottle and approached the largest spider. She pierced the leather with one of it’s pincers and immediately venom began to flow into the bottle. After a few seconds, it was full.

“Well,” Aleesia mumbled, “I guess everyone else gets to keep their venom.”

Re-corking the bottle, she walked over to where Hadvar was standing and nodded to let him know that she was all set. He nodded back, and with one last look at the spider den, turned and walked down the tunnel. Aleesia just barely caught his mumble of “What’s next? Giant snakes?”

The tunnel  led down to yet another river with yet another bridge connected to yet  _ another _ cavern. They crossed the bridge and approached an out of place carriage. Just as Aleesia was about to complain about how repetitive the tunnel system was, Hadvar pulled her down into a crouch.

“Hold up,” he whispered, “There’s a bear just ahead. See her?”

“Yeah, what should we do about it?”

“I’d rather not tangle with her right now, and I doubt you’d want to get into a fight with her either.”

She nodded, “You’ve got that right.”

“We might be able to sneak by her. Just stay low and watch your step.”

Together, they slowly made their way across the cavern, staying as close to the wall and as far away from the bear as possible. Halfway across, the bear began to stir. Aleesia and Hadvar froze in place and watched as the bear stood, stretched, and plopped right back down to sleep. A quick and silent sigh was all they allowed themselves before they resumed their trek. They passed the bear, and crept through another tunnel before standing up.

“Whew,” Hadvar sighed, “That was close.”

Aleesia nodded, “Let’s keep going in case it wakes up for real.”

They didn’t have to keep going for long though. Just around the corner, the pair saw a glowing opening.

“That looks like the way out!” Hadvar exclaimed, jogging towards the light, “I was starting to wonder if we’d ever make it!”

Aleesia sheathed her sword and began running after Hadvar. She couldn’t stop the smallest of smiles from spreading across her face.

_ Finally! Finally we’re out! _


	4. Introductions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aleesia is introduced to some of the people of Skyrim and the harsh realities of civil war.

Aleesia stood at the mouth of the cave, drinking in the sight of trees and birds and mountains 

and things that were distinctly _outside_. She inhaled deeply.

“Ah~ Thank goodness, we’re out!”

Hadvar nodded in agreement, and they both moved to step out into the sunlight. A dragon’s roar echoed across the sky and they froze. It had sounded close. They each took half a step back; enough to be hidden from anything looking down from above, but enough to see what was going on. Aleesia crouched and prepared to sprint back into the cave.

“If that thing is _here_ and it _sees us_ ,” she whisper-yelled, “We have a better chance back inside with the bear.”

“You’re not wrong, lass. We’ll just have to hope it doesn’t see us then.”

They sat, crouched just barely in the shadows, watching as the dragon flew in circles around the mountains. Every now and then, it would release a roar or a short burst of flame almost as if it was gloating. Each noise and movement from the dragon made Aleesia inch further and further back into the cave. She knew what those flames felt like, and she had no desire to be near them any time soon.

After what felt like an eternity, the dragon turned North and flew away over the horizon. The pair sat in silence for a little while longer, just to be safe. Hadvar began to slowly inch out from the cave and into the open. He made his way over to a nearby boulder, using it as cover. Surveying the area one final time, Hadvar stood up and beckoned Aleesia out. 

“Come on, looks like it’s gone for good this time.”

Sword drawn and fire ready, Aleesia hesitantly made her way over to Hadvar. As she reached him she dispelled her magika and lowered her weapon before saying,

“Let’s get going then. I don’t want to wait and see if it comes back.”

Hadvar nodded, “Good idea. There should be a path around here somewhere. Stay close.”

“I didn’t plan on doing anything else….” Aleesia muttered as she shuffled down the wooded slope behind Hadvar. As they walked, Aleesia took in the sights of the space around her. The trees around them were tall, green, and vibrant. They were pleasing to look at, but nothing compared to the colourful cherry blossom and maple trees found back home. 

It wasn’t long until they found a well traveled cobblestone path. Comforted by the thought that they were on a road that lead to civilization, Aleesia sheathed her sword and moved to walk next to Hadvar instead of behind him.

“Soooo…. do you know where we are?”

Hadvar paused and looked around.

“We must be close to Riverwood.” 

“Well how would you know that?” 

“See that ruin up there? Bleak Falls Barrow. When I was a boy, that place always used to give me nightmares. Draugr creeping down the mountain to climb through my window at night, that kind of thing. I admit, I still don't much like the look of it.”

“Oh.”

As they continued down the path, the duo turned a corner and came upon three stone pillars. Aleesia had never seen anything like this in the Summerset Isles. She cautiously walked up to them and stood on their raised platform.

“These are the Guardian Stones. Three of the thirteen ancient standing stones that dot Skyrim's landscape.”

“What do they do?” Aleesia asked, gazing over them.

“I'm not quite sure. They never really do anything for me. Legend says they're supposed to grant you power.”

“Grant power? That’s vague, what does that even mean?”

“These stones here are called The Warrior Stone, The Mage Stone, and The Thief stone. I would imagine activating one of them would grant you a power linked to their name.”

“Really? So, The Mage Stone might increase my Magika or something?”

“It very well might, lass. There’s only one way to tell; try it for yourself.”

Aleesia walked up to The Mage Stone and examined the engraving on the front. It looked to be of an elderly man, with long hair and a beard. He was clothed in old-fashioned wizard's robes and seemed to be casting a spell of some sort. Aleesia walked forward and gently placed her right hand over the center of the engraving. All at once, she felt an unknown magik surge through her body. She gasped, and looked up to see a beam of pure blue light shoot into the sky from the top of the stone. She couldn’t explain how but she knew that, thanks to this stone, she would be able to hone her skills in magik faster than before. Stumbling backwards, Aleesia took a deep breath.

“Wow….”

“Well lass?” Hadvar came up from behind her, “What did it do? I’ve never seen one glow like that before.”

“I… I’m not sure how, but… It gave me the ability to become a better mage faster, I guess.”

“What?”

“It’s like, if I were given a spell that took ten weeks of constant practice to become adept at, I would only need eight of those weeks.”

“Ah, so you’re able to learn faster?”

“Yes! Precisely!” Aleesia jumped up and clapped her hands, “This will make my quest so much easier!”

“Quest?” Hadvar jerked his head towards the road as he asked and began walking, “What quest?”

Aleesia followed, “Well, the whole reason I’m in Skyrim is to master Restoration magik. The faster I can do that, the faster I can return home.”

“Why Restoration?”

Aleesia looked to the side. She had no reason to keep her motivations hidden from Hadvar; he had been nothing but helpful so far. Yet something told her it was best to keep her sister’s situation a secret.

“Lass?”

“I want to be a healer!” Aleesia blurted.

Hadvar startled at this sudden outburst and then chuckled, “A healer? Not a bad job, respectable even. Though be warned, while you’re in Skyrim, you might have to do just as much hurting as healing.”

“Why?”

“Come on now, Aleesia.” Hadvar huffed, “You’ve seen it. We’re in the middle of a civil war and with you being a High Elf, Stormcloaks are more likely to attack you on sight. Add to that the number of bandits, monsters, cults, thieves, and well……. Just be prepared to put your life first, alright?”

“I never thought about that. In all my planning, I never thought about how dangerous this might be…”

They continued on in silence, only encountering a couple of wolves along the way. It was when they could see Riverwood down the road that Hadvar spoke up again.

“Look, I know you weren’t on the list of people to capture today but any soldiers who saw you and survived Helgen might still think you’re a wanted fugitive.”

“What!?! But I’m not!”

“I know that; I _was_ the one with the list remember? After everything you’ve done today, even if you were a fugitive, I’d say you’re pardoned. I have to write to General Tulius to see if we can make that pardon final. Until then, stay clear of any Imperials and don’t get into trouble.”

“Hadvar, thank you.”

Hadvar nodded, “I’ll send you a letter once you’re in the clear. Now come on, my uncle runs a blacksmith in town. He’ll be able to help us out.”

They jogged on, and had barely passed through the town’s walls when a rough voice called out to them.

“Hadvar!” A stocky blonde nord stepped down from the smithy’s grindstone and walked briskly towards the pair.

“Hello Uncle Alvor.” The men embraced each other. Alvor gave his nephew a few hearty pats on the back.

“What are you doing here lad? Are you on leave from…. Shor’s bones.” Alvor took a moment to take in Hadvar’s appearance. Covered in mud, blood, and burns; he wasn’t exactly easy on the eyes. He placed a firm hand on Hadvar’s shoulder, “What happened to you boy?”

“Shh, Uncle, please.” Hadvar quickly scanned the area, “Keep your voice down. I’m fine. But we should go inside to talk.”

“Huh? Why? What’s going on? And...” Alvor took notice of Aleesia, “Who’s this?”

“She’s a friend.” Hadvar nodded towards her, “Saved my life in fact. Now come on. I’ll explain everything, but we need to go inside.”

“Alright, I’ll have Sigrid make us something to eat while you fill us in.”

Aleesia followed the men into the house adjoining the blacksmith. The room they entered was small; a bed in one corner, a staircase leading downwards in the other, and a fireplace in the middle. There were a few shelves that appeared to be more for decoration than storage. Upon entry, Alvor called out to his wife and insisted the two take a seat at the table. Alvor’s wife, Sigrid, came up the stairs and gasped upon seeing Hadvar. She rushed over to him, mouth agape. Her hands flitted over him, frantic but gentle.

“Hadvar! By the gods, we’ve been so worried! What happened to you? Are you alright?”

“We’re fine Aunt Sigrid,” Hadvar gently pushed her away, “Better than most at least. I was just about to explain to Uncle what happened.”

“Well, if you insist.” Sigrid glanced at Aleesia and offered them both a strained smile, “You two must be hungry. I’ll get you something to eat.”

“Thank you.” Aleesia murmured while Hadvar simply nodded. Sigrid grinned and walked over to the fireplace to begin prepping the cooking pot.

“Now then, boy.” Alvor spoke up, “What’s the big mystery? What are you doing here, looking like you lost an argument with a cave bear?”

“Ha!” Hadvar let out a surprised laugh, “I wish it was just a cave bear Uncle. But honestly, I’m not sure where to start.”

“Well, start from what you last told me. Weren’t you assigned to some general’s guard?”

“General Tullius, yes. We had made a stop in Helgen, for reasons I didn’t quite know yet. We stayed there for a few nights. Then one day, this morning in fact, the captain gave me a book containing a long list of names. There must have been at least a hundred. I asked her what they were for. She only grinned and told me that the rebellion ends today.”

Alvor’s eyes went wide, “She couldn’t have possibly meant…”

“Aye,” Hadvar nodded, “Amongst those names was Ulfric Stormcloak himself.”

Sigrid came over and set hot bowls of rabbit stew in front of each of them. “Shouldn’t that be a good thing for you?” she asked.

“It would have been, except for what happened next.”

“Well? Don’t keep us waiting boy!”

“Things started off smoothly. Cart after cart of captured Stormcloaks made their way into Helgen and towards the main courtyard. I began crossing off more names than I could have possibly imagined. The last cart made its way down and I’m on my last few names. Just as I cross off the last name on my list, this one walks forward.” Hadvar gestures with his hand at Aleesia.

“Her? She’s a rebel? Hadvar, why would you side with-”

“I’m not a rebel!” Aleesia cuts him off sharply, “I’m not even from Skyrim. I traveled here to learn magik and somehow got caught up in all of this.”

Hadvar nodded, “She tells the truth Uncle, her name wasn’t on the list of wanted criminals. I even told the captain this but she…… demanded that Aleesia go to the block anyways.”

Sigrid gasps and covers her mouth. “You poor thing,” she whispers, placing a careful hand on Aleesia’s shoulder.

Aleesia smiled and patted the woman’s smaller hand, “Well, that didn’t exactly go as she had hoped seeing as I’m still here.”

“No,” Hadvar shook his head, “No it did not. As soon as she had her head placed on the block, the impossible happened. Uncle, Aunt Sigrid, I know what I’m about to say is going to sound insane. But I promise you, all of this actually happened. I need you to believe me.”

“Of course, dear.” Sigrid nodded.

“Always, boy. Now get on with it!”

“Before the headsman could prepare to swing, Helgen was attacked…… by a dragon.”

“A dragon?” Alvor scoffed, “I know I just said I’d always believe you, lad. But a dragon? That’s… ridiculous! You aren’t drunk, are you boy?”

“Darling,” Sigrid interjected, “Let him tell his story.”

“This isn’t some story, Miss.” Aleesia spoke up, “This happened. To us.”

“And there isn’t much more to tell.” Hadvar added, “The dragon flew around and completely destroyed the place. It caused a mass panic. I don’t even know for sure if anyone else got out alive. I doubt I would have made it out myself, if not for Aleesia.”

“Neither of us would have made it out if we hadn’t worked together.”

“Aye. Regardless, I need to make my way back to Solitude and let the higher ups know what happened there. I thought you might be able to help us out, Uncle.”

“Oh?”

“Just some food, supplies, and a place to stay for the night.”

Alvor deflated, “Of course, Hadvar. Take all the time you need. And you,” he turned to Aleesia, “Any friend of Hadvar’s is a friend of mine. I’m glad to help however I can.”

Aleesia nodded, “Thank you.” She glanced at Sigrid, “Both of you, I greatly appreciate your kindness and hospitality.”

“Of course, dear.” Sigrid placed a hand on Aleesia’s shoulder, “After everything that’s happened, and after you helped save Hadvar, it’s the least we can do.”

“But,” Alvor spoke up, “I feel bad for even asking, we’re going to need your help.”

“How so?” Aleesia began to rub her left arm, “I’m still recovering from all of this but I promise to do what I can.”

“It’s nothing strenuous. It’s just… Riverwood is defenseless. If what you say is true,” Alvor ignored the scathing glare he got from his nephew, “we need to get word to Jarl Balgruuf in Whiterun that there’s a dragon on the loose and he needs to send whatever soldiers he can. If you could do that for me, I’d be in your debt.”

“Sure,” her smile was shaky, “That doesn’t sound too hard. How do I get to Whiterun from here?”

“Cross the river and then head north. You’ll see it, just past the falls. When you get there, keep going up. The large building at the top of the hill is the Jarl’s palace, Dragonsreach.”

“Alright, and what should I expect from the Jarl?”

“He rules all of Whiterun Hold. He’s a good man, perhaps a bit over-cautious, but these are dangerous times.”

Aleesia turned to Hadvar, “Is the Jarl on your side of the war?”

“No, so far he’s managed to stay out of the war. I don’t think that will last though.”

She turned back to Alvor, “Even if he’s stayed out of it, there must be a side he favors more right?”

Alvor shrugged, “I don’t think he likes either Ulfric or Elisif much. Who can blame him? But I have no doubts that he’ll prove loyal to the Empire in the end. He’s no traitor.”

“Um…” Aleesia pulled at the rounded tip of her right ear and looked down at the table, “Who, exactly, is Elisif again?”

Alvor chuckled, “My apologies, I forget that you’re new to Skyrim. Though, I should call her Jarl Elisif. Even if it’s only because she was married to Jarl Torryg before he was murdered.”

“Murdered!?”

“Shor’s bones, girl!” Alvor shook his head, “Do you know _nothing_ about what’s been happening here?”

“No!” she blushed and looked up, “I know that the Aldmeri Dominion and the Empire signed the White-Gold Concordat and that it stopped the greatest war that could have ever been!”

“But do you know what that treaty _did_ , lass?”

“I……… not really.”

“Aleesia,” Hadvar leaned forward, “That treaty banned the worship of Talos; a mortal who many believe became a god once he died.”

Aleesia blinked. _Out of everything I’ve just been through, that might be the hardest thing to believe. To think a mortal, regardless of their achievements in life, could be on the same level as the Divines? Absurd!_

“Although,” Hadvar went on, “the Empire didn’t really enforce the ban until the Stormcloaks started making a fuss about it.”

“The Stormcloaks think the banning of Talos worship is reprehensible.” Alvor cut in, “They see the Empire as weak and traitors to Skyrim and her people for bowing to the Aldmeri Dominion. So Ulfric killed Torryg; walked right into his palace in Solitude and shouted him to death if you believe the tales.”

“And that’s what started all this?” Aleesia mumbled.

“Aye. The Empire couldn’t ignore what Ulfric had done. If jarls start killing each other again, we’ll be back to the bad old days.”

“This may seem silly to ask then, but, are you with the Empire?”

“Of course! Skyrim’s always been a part of the Empire. There’s no reason to change that. Now, that doesn’t mean I support everything the Empire’s been doing lately. But, the Nords have never exactly been fair-weather friends.”

“How do you feel about the war?”

Alvor huffed, “People are rightly stirred up about the damn Thalmor being allowed to roam around arresting people, just for worshipping Talos.”

Aleesia grew silent as Alvor continued on.

“But was it worth tearing Skyrim apart, and maybe destroying the Empire? No. No, Ulfric will have a lot to answer for in the end. Nords have always supported the Empire, and the Empire has always been good for Skyrim. In fact…”

Aleesia absentmindedly played with the food in front of her as she zoned out. _I had no idea it was this bad here. The people in the city only ever talked about how much good the Concordat did. I wish I had known what was actually going on here. Then maybe…_

“Aleesia?”

Her head shot up and she looked at Hadvar with wide eyes, “What?”

“Are you alright lass?”

“Hm? Yes, why?”

“We asked you a question.”

“Oh? Did you? I’m sorry, what was it?”

“What about you?” Alvor jumped in, leaning forward, “Where do you stand in all this?”

“I’m not….. I don’t…… I don’t know. I didn’t even know this was a war! I thought it was just one of those temporary rebellions that happen after a major change... ”

“Well,” Alvor shrugged and leaned back, “you _are_ a high elf. So you’re probably with the Empire then.”

“I….. I guess?” Aleesia tugged her right ear again, “I mean, the arrogance it takes to declare than a man can be on the same level as the Divines? I don’t know much about this ‘Talos’, but he’s no god. And to kill over this….. I’m not sure….”

“Well,” Hadvar interjected gently, “you chose to follow me at Helgen. Why?”

“Huh?”

“I heard Ralof call out to you, before we ran into the keep. But you chose to follow me. You’re telling me that had nothing to do with the war or choosing a side?”

“No!” she waved her hands frantically, “I swear! I didn’t choose to follow you because you’re with the Empire. I followed you because… well…. You didn’t look at me like I was mammoth dung on the back of your shoe.”

Alvor stared, eyes wide, while Hadvar cursed under his breath.

“Damn rebels! Can’t even stop themselves from judging ...”

Minutes went by where no one said anything. Shoulders were tense and eye contact was fleeting. They ate the meal Sigrid had prepared for them in silence. At one point, a little girl burst into the house, rosy cheeked and doe eyed. She took only a second to realize that Hadvar was sat at the table and even less than that to tackle him.

“OhmygodHadvarIcan’tbelieveyou’rebackgivemeasecondigottagotellmamasomethingreallyreallyreallyimportantbuttheni’llbeback!”

One more second and she was gone. Aleesia paused, fork halfway to her mouth, to just process what had happened. Seeing the look on her face, Hadvar chuckled.

“That,” he jabbed a thumb over his shoulder, “was Dorothy. She’s my cousin. She’s a good kid, but a bit energetic.”

“HA!” Alvor slapped a hand on the table, “a _bit energetic_ he says! Lass, that little girlie is a right spitfire!

She smiled softly. “Yes,” Aleesia whispered, “She sure is.” _Just like Ryllae used to be, before…._ Her smile began to slip. Her brow furrowed. She chewed on her lip. None of which, went unnoticed by Hadvar.

“Aleesia? What’s-”

“HADVAR!!! YOU FOUGHT A DRAGON?!?”

Dorothy stood at the top of the basement stairs, grasping the railing and even more out of breath than when she had come home. 

Hadvar’s gaze lingered on Aleesia for a brief second before he turned to answer his cousin.

“Aye. We-”

“What did it look like? Did it have big teeth? How big were its wings? Did it breathe fire like in the stories?” She was holding on to Hadvar’s arm, bouncing on her toes.

“Well-”

“Dorothy!”

Hadvar let out a sigh as Sigrid came up the stairs. Grasping her daughter’s ear, Sigrid dragged Dorothy away from the table and over to the fireplace. “Hush child! Don’t pester your cousin.”

“But mama! He fought a dragon! A real li-”

“No buts! He and his friend have had a long day. Let them be.”

“Yes, mama.” Dorothy sat down by the hearth, playing with the soot and looking dejected.

Alvor let out a small chuckle. Aleesia looked at his face and could see the love he had for his family in his eyes. Again, she was reminded of Ryllae and her heart sank.

“Well,” Alvor clapped his hands together before standing up, “I’d better get back to work. You two feel free to make yourselves at home.”

“Thank you Uncle.” “Thank you.” The pair said in unison. Alvor waved at them before walking out the door, back to his smithy. With Alvor gone, and Sigrid keeping Dorothy busy, Aleesia’s mind drifted onto her next moves.

“Hadvar?” she said softly.

“Aye lass?”

“What do you plan to do next? Are you headed straight back to…. Wherever your general is?”

Hadvar shook his head, “No. I think it’s best if I take a few days to rest up. We _did_ just fight a dragon, and walked away with our lives; that’s no easy task.”

Aleesia hummed as she nodded in agreement. It _wasn’t_ an easy task. It _shouldn’t_ have been a task at all. To think……. _dragons_ existed again. It was terrifying.

“And you Aleesia?”

“Hm?”

“What do you plan to do?”

“I think…” Aleesia rested her chin in her hands, “I think I should go speak to this Jarl Bulgruf as soon as possible.”

“Surely you mean as soon as possible, after you rest up of course?”

She shook her head, “No. I think it’s best if I head out now.” She pushed her chair back and stood up.

Hadvar’s hand shot out and grabbed her forearm. “Aleesia! You can’t be serious?”

“Of course I am.”

“You’re not even close to being recovered yet!”

She smirked, “I thought I was told this wouldn’t be a dangerous mission? Surely travelling from here to the Jarl’s palace won’t be any more dangerous than anything that’s happened today.”

Hadvar’s grip relaxed, “No, but…”

“But nothing, Hadvar.” She eased his hand off her forearm, “There’s a dragon out there, and your uncle is right. This town isn’t prepared to fight a dragon. I doubt any town is. The Jarl needs to know so he can protect his people."

Hadvar sighed and ran a hand over his face. “You’re right, I suppose. But,” he stood and walked to a shelf, where he grabbed a large red bottle and handed it to Aleesia. “Drink this. It’s a health potion. It should help most of those injuries heal quicker.”

Alessia smiled and took the bottle from his outstretched hand. “Thanks.” She popped off the cork and drank as much of it as she could. Sigrid’s meal had been so filling, however, that she only managed to get a few swallows down. Even still, the potion began to heal her injuries the second she drank it. She put the cork back in and handed it to Hadvar.

“Anything else I should do before I head out?”

“Aye,” Hadvar placed the bottle back on the shelf, “You should stop at the inn and the general store. See if you can grab some food and potions just in case.”

Aleesia nodded, “I guess that’s all there is to it then. I’ll get going now.” She walked behind Hadvar’s chair and gave him a hearty pat on his shoulder. She opened the door and turned to give one last goodbye to the family that had shown her such kindness.

“Goodbye everyone!” She waved over her shoulder.

Hadvar nodded while Dorothy waved energetically. Sigrid turned from the hearth and gave Aleesia a smile warmer than the fire in front of her.

“Not goodbye dear; farewell! Remember, you’re always welcome here.”

Aleesia grinned wide and waved back more energetically. She stepped out the door with promises to write to them and bring back a dragon scale for little Dorothy. She closed the door and readied herself for the journey ahead.


	5. Family Matters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aleesia is reminded of her sister and well.... She can't just.....not offer help, right?

She had stopped at the inn first, hoping to buy some more health potions for her trip. Unfortunately, she only had the thirteen septims she had found in Helgen and she doubted that would be enough to buy any quality potions. The inn wasn't a complete loss though; the innkeeper had let her use the small alchemy lab to brew some of her own. She walked out of the inn while stuffing the two small health potions in her bag. They weren’t the strongest, but they would keep her alive.

The next stop was the general store. She walked over and was about to push open the door when she heard yelling coming from inside. Tensing up, she placed a hand on her sword and prepared for a fight. She leaned forward and cracked the door slightly in an attempt to hear what the people yelling were saying.

“I said no!” a gruff voice called out, accompanied by the heavy thump of a fist hitting a counter, “No adventures, no theatrics, no theif-chasing!”

“Well what then?” a lighter voice challenged with a firm tone, “What are we going to do now, huh? Let’s hear it!”

Aleesia let out the breath she had been holding in and stood up. She took her hand off her sword and calmed herself down. Nothing to be afraid of, no one’s in danger. She took a step back, took one more breath, and pushed open the door. She was greeted with the sight of a man and woman glaring at each other over the counter. The man’s mouth was open and he looked to be readying himself to launch into another tirade. That was before he caught sight of Aleesia standing there. Upon seeing her, he snapped his mouth shut and let out a heavy breath through his nose. He turned back to the woman, pointed a stern finger at her, and hissed through gritted teeth.

“We are done talking about this.”

The woman huffed in response, crossed her arms, and marched over to the table by the fireplace. Aleesia waited until the woman sat down before carefully approaching the man. He leaned forward, resting his forearms on the counter, and drummed his fingers.

“Sorry you had to hear that. I don’t know what you overheard, but the Riverwood Trader is still open! Feel free to shop.”

Aleesia’s head tilted slightly to the side.

“Why wouldn’t the shop be open? Does it have to do with the theif-chasing that you two were… discussing?”

“Uh, yeah,” the man stood up straight and crossed his arms, “We did have a bit of a… well a bit of a break in. But we still have plenty to sell! Robbers were only after one thing. It was an ornament-”

A single eyebrow rose and Aleesia interjected, “That doesn’t seem right. Why would they only steal one thing?” she looked around and mumbled quietly under her breath, “There’s plenty of things in here that would be useful and easy to steal…”

The man uncrossed his arms and placed them on his hips, “Well it was made of solid gold. In the shape of a dragon’s claw.”

“Oh,” her eyes widened, “oh that makes much more sense.”

“Yeah,” the man scoffed, “The big issue isn’t that it’s solid gold though. No, it was a family heirloom, passed down for generations. And now that it’s gone, this one,” he gestured with his hand to the woman, “wants to go out and find it.”

“I don’t see why you won’t let me!” the woman whipped her head around to glare, “You’re too concerned about keeping the shop open to go find it! I offer to watch the shop and what do I get told?! ‘No, you’re not capable of managing the shop.’ Pah!”

“You’re not!” the man cried back, “If I went out looking for it, who knows how long I might be gone! What if I’m gone for days? Weeks? Months? You’re perfectly capable of working the counter, but taking care of everything?!” he made a wide sweeping gesture, “Camilla, you’ve never had to deal with shipments coming in from undesirable traders or worry about taxes to the Jarl. I have. You just… don’t know what it takes to keep this place in business.”

The woman, Camilla, scoffed and the scowl on her face worsened. It was obvious these two were close and if they were arguing about a family heirloom, they were probably siblings. Aleesia felt a brief, sharp pain tug at her heart and decided to step in.

“I could try to find it for you.”

Both parties froze. The man’s eyes gleamed and a hopeful smile flitted across his face.

“You could? That would be amazing! I- I’ve got some coin coming in from my last shipment to Whiterun. If you can bring back the claw, it’s yours!”

“I’ll do my best. Any idea where I should start?”

The man leaned back and scratched his chin, “I’m not sure what bandits stole it but the closest group is holed up in Bleak Falls Barrow, northeast of town.”

Aleesia nodded, “That big castle-looking ruin?”

“That’s the one! You’re gonna want to be careful though. On top of bandits, the place is rumored to be crawling with the undead.”

“So I’ve been told. I’ll watch my back,” Aleesia turned and headed to the door, “I’ll try to get back as quickly as I can. I… have to take care of some other things first, though.”  
“Of course,” the man waved dismissively, “You have your own business to attend to, I’m sure. Go take care of it; we’ll still be here,” he shot a sharp look towards Camilla, “won’t we?”  
Camilla huffed in response and stormed upstairs. Aleesia chuckled.  
“I’ll return with your claw,” she affirmed as she stepped outside, “have no doubts about that.”  
“Stay safe! And thank you again!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (pst! thank you to the reader who left me my first ever kudos! you made my day and im so happy you enjoy the story so far :D )


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